And samuel k



Patented Feb. 22, 1898.

ATTORNEYS.

(No Model.)

G. D. MIMS & S. K. DUNKLE.

RAILROAD RAIL FASTENBR. No. 599,622.

WITNESSES UNITED STATES PATENT 1'0 FFICE.

GILES D. MIMS, OF EDGEFIELD, SOUTH OAROLIN A, AND SAMUEL K. DUNKLE, OF FINLEYVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNORS OF ONE-THIRD TO WIL- LIAM H. KING, OF FINLEYVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

aAIL'RQAD-RAIL FASTENER'.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 599,622, dated February 22, 1898.

Application filed June 11, 1897. Serial No-- 640,325. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GILES D. MIMS, of Edgefield,in the county of Edgefield and State of South Carolina, and SAMUEL K. DUNKLE, of Finleyville, in the county of Washington and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railroad- Rail Fasteners, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention is in the nature of an improved fastener for connecting together the ends of railroad-rails and also securing them to the subjacent ties; and it consists in the peculiar construction and arrangement of plates, as will be hereinafter more fully described. V

Figure 1 is a side view, Fig. 2 aplan view, Fig. 3 a cross-section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 an inverted plan, of the rails with the tie-plate attached.

In the drawings, AA are the two abutting ends of the rails, B B are the subjacent crossties, and O .O are the tie-plates which constitute the rail-fastener. These tie-plates are made exactly alike, and consist of metal plates which are bent longitudinally, so as to lie against the web portion of the rail at a, the base of the rail at b, and are turned under the edge of the rail-base a little distance at c. L At the lower edge of these plates near the ends are formed, integral with the plates, long tongues or wings O 0 which pass under the rail-base and extend across beneath the base to some distance beyond the same and are provided at this point with a spike-hole c (or 0 at such a distance as will enable the spike 01 when driven through it to snugly hug and overlap with its head the rail-base. When these plates are applied to the oppo-' The tongues or wings O O are so arranged that they lappast each other under the rail at the ends of the plate, and for this purpose the tongues on any one plate are arranged one at the extreme end and the other at a a distance from the other end equal to the width of the tongue of the other plate, as seen in Fig. 4. y

The upper portion a of the plates, whichlies against the web of the rail, is slightly curved or arched away from the web, so as to leave a slight hollow space next to the web. This is for the purpose of allowing a slight spring in the plates when they are clampedagainstthe rails by the bolts e, which pass through the Web of the rail, thus holding the nuts firmly against jolting off. The holes in the plates through which these bolts 6 pass are also slightly elongated longitudinally to the rail to permit endwise expansion and contraction in the rail from variations in temperature. When the ends of the rails are secured in these plates by bolts 6 and the tongues of the plates are spiked down, a very firm and strong joint is made, acting as fish-plates to hold the ends of the rail in alinement and as tie-plates to secure the rails to the cross-ties with a single construction. With this construction the rails are prevented from spreading under the lateral thrust of the oar-wheels, for this spreading action is resisted by the spikes on both sides of the railvl. e., the lateral movement of the rail in any given direction is resisted both by direct bearing against the spike on one side and by the pull on the tongue from the spike on the opposite side.

.Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letthe plate lies and there provided with spikeplate lies and adapted to receive spikes subholes substantially as and for the purpose destantially as and for the purpose described. scribed. GILES D. MIMS.

2. A rail-fastener comprising two splioe- SAMUEL K. DUNKLE. 5 plates having a ooncaved upper part a lying \Vitnesses as to signature of Giles D. Minis:

against the web of the rail and provided with A. A. GAGE, bolt-holes a lower portion 1) extending over the H. G. HARTZOG. rail-base an underturned edge a lying under Witnesses as to signature of Samuel K. the rail-base, and two perforated tongues eX- Dunkle: 1o tending beneath the rail-base to the opposite O. R. GRUBER,

side of the rail from the one on which the J. N. KERR. 

